Which Trans, 84 Cutlass, /Built 350/ 8.5 3.73 Rear End.

[brianroark]

Sorry if this has been covered but.

I have a 84 cutlass supreme for a project car.

I have a 350 out of a 72 442 built up on the engine stand.

So Far I picked up a 8.5 rear end out of a 442 with 3.73 gears.

i also picked up a turbo 350 trans but my brother has a 200-4r in his monte carlo ls.

my brother is telling me to use the 200-4r but someone else told me to get a 4l60e or turbo 400. he said you dont have much room with the 200-4r over 300 hp and i should problably stick with my turbo 350 with a shift kit and 3000 stall converter.

Which trans with the 3.73 gears would be the best for me, i hear people saying u want over drive for 3.73 but the guy told me with a turbo 350 combination it would be at about 2900 rpm at 65mph. I'm pretty much city street and hwy driving it but would like to maybe travel up to 100 miles in the car on rare occasions on the interstate.

Im pretty much lost here and would appreciate some help from some senior members here.


Thanks,
Brian

 

[Brick442]

A properly rebuilt TH200-4R can handle a decent amount of torque (that's what can kill it).

I'm running one in my 85 442 with a chevy 383 pushing 450hp/500 ft. lbs. with no problems. I did put some $$ into it though, manual valve body, 10 vane pump, deeper pan, all the kevlar and billet stuff etc.

 

[NAILS]

blake is absolutely right- just like a 700r4- the 200r4 can be built to handle large amounts of torque. if you visit turbobuicks.com they advertise quite a few shops and companies that built some very trick 200r4 setups, however you will be shelling out some$$

if your willing to pay for gas, that built a th400- they are not so expensive to built and can handle over 300 hp in stock form. just ask the transmission shop which converter is right for you.

 

[brianroark]

well whats the cheapest and most efficent route? This guy is willing to rebuilt my th-350 with stronger clutches and a shift kit and go through the whole thing for 250 bucks? What would it cost me to rebuild and setup a 200-4R the correct way.


Btw, not so much worried about the gas im going to probably be beating on the car any how so i would be suckin gas n haulin *ss :evil:

Until I get bored with it and go for a 455 haha.

 

[85 Cutlass Brougham]

For a cheap weekend car, the TH-350 is going to cost less. For a daily driver, the Th 200 4R is a better choice as it won't spin the engine as hard. However, the TH-350 is stronger stock. It will probably be north of $1,000 to build a proper TH-200-4R for your needs and add a lockup kit for the converter. I run a TH 200 4R in mine, but I have had issues with it. They are probably due to me not having it built to handle sufficient abuse though. The thing I dislike most about ANY automatic is that you are always one gear too high unless you have a manual valve body. I prefer a manual and will be swapping one in my car... some day.

 

[Phoenyx]

You have a 350 from an old 442? Is this a Chevy or an Olds motor? I'm not sure (but could be wrong) if those newer trannys will bolt up to an Olds block. Am I right guys?

 

[dan2286]

You have a 350 from an old 442? Is this a Chevy or an Olds motor? I'm not sure (but could be wrong) if those newer trannys will bolt up to an Olds block. Am I right guys?

It can be done with an adapter plate. Also, make sure the bolt pattern on the 350 trans is BOP or it will need an adapter plate also.

 

[Doober]

My vote lies with 2004R. The turbo Regal guys are running sub-10s with them.

Bellhousing bolt pattern isn't an issue, they made some with a Chevy pattern, and some with a dual pattern (Chevy/BOP) on both transmissions (350 may have just had a Chevy or BOP, not both).

 

[brianroark]

i have a pontiac 350 transmission and a 350 rocket from a 72 442. although i just pulled the motor and trans out of the 84 cutlass today and the transmission looked newer and looked exacly like the turbo 350 i picked up, do any of the 200's look like a th-350? I didnt see metric on the trans pan either or did the previous owner put a th-350 in the car?

 

[Doober]

No, the 350s all have the square pan with a notch out of a corner. The 2004Rs are longer and somewhat oddly shaped at one end.